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Bridging the Water Gap
| Frequently Asked Questions
What is the focus of Briding the Water Gap?
All life is dependent upon water. Bridging the Water Gap will join ecologists, writers,
musicians, artists, researchers, quantum physicists, philosophers and educators to
discuss the many issues surrounding the state of water on our planet. This gathering
is a celebration that will expand public awareness regarding water. The conference
will provide presentations and workshops in the fields of innovative technology,
management practices and policies to help improve the supply and quality of global
freshwater resources.
Why is this conference important? Global signs of stress and strain on life's most
precious resource, water, are evident with the increasing demands of our growing
industrialized population. The challenges of increased use and decreased supply of
fresh water create heightened tension between countries and cultures. This tension
has become apparent in all sectors of society. Pressure, on water as a resource,
affects individual health, food production and safety, municipal water treatment
systems, degradation of ecosystems, industrial production and energy utilization.
We all pay the heavy cost for the shrinking fresh water supply. Water is the great
equalizer. No one person needs water more than another. Bridging the Water Gap will
provide beneficial information for the conservation, use and preservation of this
vital resource.
Bridging the Water Gap hopes to:
-- Introduce ideas and concepts concerning the important nature of water in indigenous
and contemporary cultures.
-- Bring into focus the current topical research on water as an energy source, necessary
commodity and revered instrument of life.
-- Bring, to an eager public, new technologies for clean water solutions and raise
awareness regarding the historical significance of water in all cultures.
-- Create a forum for information exchange between previously isolated groups, formation
of enlightened public policy and to assist corporate and private businesses to develop
positive attitudes and policies toward water utilization.
-- Honor water's importance through ceremonies practiced by a variety of groups and
indigenous people across the world.
-- Provide an opportunity for dialogue between scientific, educational and spiritual
leaders to share information that brings understanding to the community with regard
to fundamental water issues.
-- Inspire social, environmental and political change regarding our water's use and
misuse. Each person will walk away with the realization that, individually, they
can make a difference.
One person, given the tools to make a difference, can raise the awareness of those
around them. This happens by using the opportunities presented as teachable moments.
Once awareness is elevated, individuals will realize the potential water has in unifying
us as human beings and can bring peace to the planet.
For more information, visit www.aquaessenceresource.org
Who are the featured speakers of Briding the Water Gap?
Ryan Case, director and co-founder of the Water Stewards Network, has worked
on behalf of sustainable development and human rights issues in various parts of
the world. Case has designed and constructed ecological wastewater treatment systems
with internationally recognized biologist, John Todd, and continues to expand this
work. He is dedicated to study and bring awareness to global water issues and policies.
Case is also active in Peoples' World Water Movement an organization concerned with
water privatization, and every human being's inherent right to fresh water.
Japanese researcher and author, Masaru Emoto, has been studying water since
1988. He was lead to his research by a series of remarkable discoveries pertaining
to the nature of water. Emoto describes the phenomenon of HADO as "the intrinsic
vibrational pattern at the atomic level in all matter" or "the smallest
unit of energy," which is the basis for his work. His findings show the changes
that occur in water's crystalline structure after exposure to varying music, pictures,
words and prayer. Emoto has come to some startling conclusions that show how water
is receptive to various stimuli and water's crystalline structure can actually be
transformed. He has found that crystals formed in frozen water reveal changes when
specific, concentrated sounds or thoughts are directed toward them. For example,
water from clear springs or water that has been exposed to classical music, loving
words or prayer display brilliant, complex, and colorful snowflake patterns upon
freezing. On the other hand, polluted water or water exposed to negative music, thoughts
or words form incomplete, asymmetrical patterns with dull color. Emoto's water crystal
photographs are displayed in his Messages from Water book series and his 2004 book
The Hidden Messages in Water. The True Power of Water will be the title of Emoto's
upcoming book and U.S. tour. This new publication is due for release in April 2005.
Emoto's work has been featured in The Journal of Complementary and Alternative Medicine
and in the independent film What the Bleep Do We Know?
Donna Goodman is the founder and developer of the Earth Child Institute, which
is dedicated to the development and implementation of interdisciplinary and multicultural
educational initiatives for young people. She is the author of Every Body Counts,
Every Drop Matters: United Nations Classroom Resource Guide on Water. She works as
a consultant with UNICEF and is developing a learning module interactive computer
game on Water, Environment and Sanitation. In her role as Chairperson of the UN CONGO
Education Committee Task Force on Sustainable Development and Peace Education, she
initiated the project "Pumped Up for Peace." This student-led initiative
to raise funds and awareness toward global freshwater issues is currently featured
on the United Nations Cyberschoolbus Educational web portal. Goodman also co-founded
Little Scientists Franchise Corporation and presently serves on the advisory board
of The House of the Children, an indigenous community water project in the Manu Rainforest
in Peru. Goodman is the co-author of five hands-on science books published by McGraw-Hill.
Tyrone Hayes, professor of integrative biology at the University of California-Berkeley
and internationally recognized scientist, conducts research on the metamorphosis
of frogs. Research on the sex differentiation in reptiles and amphibians forms the
core of his work. Hayes conducts fieldwork in the U.S., Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania and
southern Africa. He studies male and female growth patterns to determine how anomalies
in the usual patterns are disrupted. Hayes has teamed with the United States Geological
Society (USGS) and has retained 10,000 gallons of water from three sources including
the upper Mississippi River. This water, presently frozen in his Berkeley lab, is
used in his ongoing research. This research has highlighted the means by which pesticides
interfere with the thyroid hormone that regulates frog development. Environmental
disturbances in frog hormones may forewarn developmental changes in other species,
including humans.
Daniel Kammen is the Class of 1935 Distinguished Professor of Energy at the
University of California-Berkeley, where he is a professor in the Energy and Resources
Group, professor in the Goldman School of Public Policy and professor of Nuclear
Engineering. Kammen is also the founding director of Renewable and Appropriate Energy
Laboratory [http://socrates.berkeley.edu/~rael] where he works on a wide range of
science, engineering, economics and policy projects related to energy systems and
the environment. The focus of Kammen's work is on the science and policy of clean,
renewable energy systems, energy efficiency, the role of energy in national energy
policy, international climate debates and the use and impacts of energy sources and
technologies on development, particularly in Africa and Latin America. Kammen has
published five books, more than 160 journal articles and 30 research reports, many
of which are available on the RAEL website. He has worked with the media to bring
awareness of energy issues to the public and to elected officials.
Marcia Macomber is director of program development for the Universities Partnership
for Transboundary Waters. This international consortium of 10 universities on five
continents is working to raise awareness for cooperative water resources governance
through training programs, research and outreach. Macomber has served as an International
Development Associate with the University of Michigan's Population, Environmental
Change and Security (PECS) Initiative, and worked on international transboundary
environmental issues with the U.S. Embassy's Regional Environmental Hub in Amman,
Jordan, and on the U.S. Mexican border.
William E. Marks, researcher and long-time advocate for the protection of
water, will share his life's passion concerning water. His book, The Holy Order of
Water, endorsed by Walter Cronkite and Larry Dossey, is an amazing summary of water's
significance throughout history and the important role water has played in all cultures.
Marks briefly served as the Senior Environmental Analyst for the City of Newark's
water programs before undertaking a 7,000 mile horseback trek across the United States.
During the trek, entitled "Ride For Nature," Marks lived outside for two
years while assessing America's waters from San Diego to Maine. He has since visited
Europe, North Africa, Australia, Ireland and other countries to study historical
water management practices. Marks has testified before Congress and has been featured
on CNN and in other national media as a water resource expert.
Craig Peyton is founder of EarthFlight Media, a multimedia production and
music company that combines Peyton's passion for flying, music and photography. EarthFlight
Media produces unique, inspiring films that reflect the beauty of nature. Peyton
learned the craft of aerial cinematography, flying his Mooney 201 aircraft filming
a full-length music video to support his CD release, "Latitude, 40 Degrees North."
He has since filmed a multitude of 35mm aerials throughout North America, Central
America, South America, Africa and Europe. Peyton's broad range of abilities include
composition of underscore for the Smithsonian, PBS Nature series, and the hit TV
show, Friends. Peyton flew with legendary aerial photographer Robert Fulton in a
single engine Cessna aircraft from New York to Quito, Ecuador, while filming for
the BBC. His newly released DVD, The Spirit of Water, captures on film the natural
forms of water in all its beauty as it exists in nature.
Fred Alan Wolf is a physicist, writer and lecturer who earned his Ph.D. in theoretical
physics at UCLA in 1963. Wolf is well known for his simplification of the new physics
and is perhaps best known as the author of Taking the Quantum Leap which, in 1982,
was the recipient of the prestigious National Book Award for Science. Wolf is a member
of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Collegium of Scholars. He has taught at the University
of London, the University of Paris, the Hahn-Meitner Institute for Nuclear Physics
in Berlin, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Birkbeck College, and 12 years at
San Diego State University. He is the author of 11 books. His inquiring mind has
delved into the relationship between human consciousness, psychology, physiology,
the mystical and the spiritual. Wolf's investigations have taken him from intimate
discussions with physicist David Bohm to the magical and mysterious jungles of Peru,
from master classes with Nobel Laureate Richard Feynman to the high deserts of Mexico,
from a significant meeting with Werner Heisenberg to the hot coals of a firewalk.
Dr. Wolf is currently featured in the recent independent film, "What the Bleep
Do We Know!" He continues to write, lecture worldwide, and conduct research
on the relationship of quantum physics to consciousness.
Who are the creators of Briding the Water Gap?
AquaEssence ReSource was founded in December 2003 by Diane Jankord, Sharon
Mullen and Terri Peterson, whose combined passion for water and healing brought them
together in this adventure. AquaEssence ReSource intends to unleash the power and
knowledge water has to offer and return it to humanity. Its founders believe water
is the one element that unites us all. They believe bringing together diverse individuals,
organizations or groups will help us find that we are all traveling separate paths
toward the same destination. They hope to awaken people to look up from their own
path, to recognize that there are others on parallel paths and bring about convergence.
It is at this crossing point where stories can be told, ideas exchanged and understanding
materialized. Experimentation on the physical and non-physical properties of water
will be accomplished by the opening of a water research facility. This facility will
include a lab that will incorporate water crystal photography and cutting-edge scientific
research methods to reveal the true nature of water. AquaEssence ReSource continues
the development of an educational initiative geared for elementary and middle school
students in the area of physical and social sciences. This initiative, titled "Do
Your Words Matter?" has been successfully piloted in several schools in the
Twin Cities area. The curriculum involves experiential activities that allow students
to participate and observe how thought, word and sound affect the outcome of these
experiments. The goal of this educational tool is to encourage consideration of one's
actions by physically demonstrating the importance of the thoughts and words students
choose and to help the student make productive choices when interacting with others.
[www.aquaessenceresource.org]
A Single Drop was founded in early 2004 by Gemma Bulos based on the concept
that "it takes a single drop of water to start a wave." A native Californian
of Philippine heritage, Gemma, is a vocalist and performer, and a producer and writer,
of several successful one-woman shows and numerous interactive children's shows performed
internationally. She traveled around the world in 2004 to teach and invite people
to sing her song, "We Rise," with her. This original anthem celebrates
water as a metaphor for "unity in action." Her world tour inspired diverse
groups in 100 cities and more than 60 countries to join together for this unprecedented
grassroots global peace movement. Gemma's tour culminated at the United Nations'
International Day of Peace on September 21, 2004. Choirs from around the world joined
together for a united moment in song, singing "We Rise." Gemma has since
been invited to perform at many international conferences and gatherings to share
her global message of water, music and unity as a pathway to peace and global harmony.
Gemma encourages youth to recognize how their behavior can affect their health and
well-being in addition to the world around them. She empowers students to become
conscious of the power in their actions. The song is available for download on her
website.
[www.asingledrop.com]
What are the lyrics to "We Rise"?
WE
RISE
Music and lyrics by Gemma
Take my hand, we'll stand in reverie
Lift your heart, we'll start our dynasty
Oh yes, we'll bathe in tears of prayer and joy
To bring our souls to waken
Oh yes, we'll shower the fears of every girl and boy
To free their hearts of aching
(Chorus -- Everyone sings) We Rise, We Rise, We Rise, We Rise, We Rise, We Rise
Still your mind, and you'll find your liberty
It's when we give, we live our legacy
We'll learn to navigate through restless storms
Our bravery we'll measure
Together find the strength to transform
Our heartache into treasure
Chorus
I'm just a little drop of water in a sea of wondrous souls
We're here to celebrate the beauty of a simple peaceful goal
We are all pilgrims we, and with love will never go asunder
Power in unity, with gratitude our voices thunder
Chorus
When mothers, brothers, sisters RISE
And fathers, daughters, sons ARISE
Then children of the world will RISE
WE RISE!
Song is available for download at www.asingledrop.com |
March 2005 |
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